1989-1994: In 1989 Touchdown Jacksonville is formed with the ultimate goal of landing a NFL
team in Northern Florida. However, Jacksonville was considered along shot at best
for the planned NFL expansion. This did not deter, Touchdown Jacksonville who
was so confident in landing a team they even selected a name in fan contest in
1991. In 1992 Jacksonville was one of five finalists for expansion in 1995, but
most still considered them a longshot. However, Touchdown Jacksonville impressed
the NFL expansion committee with its organization, as well as the fact that
they were able to sell allot of application for season tickets. When the NFL
finally decided to make a vote for the two new teams only Carolina was selected,
as the NFL owners who were initially against a thirrd NFL team in Florida began
to come around. Eventually even these owners had to give in and on November
30th the NFL voted to award Jacksonville an NFL franchise to begin play in 1995.
While the historic Gator Bowl is demolished so a brand new state of the art stadium
could take its place, the Jaguars begin to assemble the foundation of the
franchise. On February 21st Boston College head Coach Tom Coughlin is hired Coach,
and head of football operations. Prior to coaching at Boston College Coughlin
was one of Bill Parcells' top assistants on two New York Giants Super Bowl
teams. However, there were some problems in the early going the logo the Jaguars
first introduced resembled the logo trade marked by the Jaguar Automobile Company,
which created the treat of a lawsuit, and caused the Jaguars to change their
logos before ever playing a game.
1995: On September 3rd the Jaguars played their first game for keep in the brand new Jacksonville
Municipal Stadium. The Jaguars would end up losing their inaugural game
10-3 to the Houston Oilers before 72,623 fans. The Jaguars would end up losing
their first three games before winning a rematch with Oilers 17-16 in Houston
on October 1st. A week later the Jaguars will get their first home win by stunning
the eventual AFC Champion Pittsburgh Steelers 20-16. It was the first time
ever an expansion team has ever defeated a team that would go on to play in
the Super Bowl the same season. However, the Jaguars would only win two more
games the rest of the season sweeping a distracted Cleveland Browns team with
a win in Cleveland on October 22nd and a season finale win in Jacksonville on
December 24th to close out the season with a 4-12 record.
1996: The Jaguars get their second season started in style by beating the defending AFC
Champion Pittsburgh Steelers 24-9. It marks the first time ever that the Jaguars
do not allow a Touchdown in a game. However the young Jaguars continue to struggle
getting off to a 3-7 start, but despite the early losses Quarterback Mark
Brunnel starts to make a name for himself with a few 300 yard plus passing games.
Also establishing themselves are Wide Receivers Keenan McCardell and Jimmy
Smith in one game alone McCardell catches 16 passes the 3rd highest single game
mark in NFL history. Despite the individual success the team continued to lose
and frustration began to mount with Coach Tom Coughlin who has a reputation as
a heavy handed coach and his players who were frustrated with losing. After a
spirited team meeting Coughlin agrees to lay off a little, and the team would
respond. The Jaguars would win their next 5 games to put them in position to make
the playoffs with a win in their final game against the Atlanta Falcons at Jacksonville
Municipal Stadium. The Jaguars would get off to a 19-17 lead but as
time waned the Falcons drove down the field to get into Field Goal range. With
only five seconds remaining the Falcons sent the usually automatic Morten Andersen
out to kick a 30-yard chip shot Field Goal that would have ended the Jags
hopes. However, destiny smiled on Jacksonville as Andersen's kick sailed wide left,
and the Jaguars would hold on to win, and earn a playoff berth with a 9-7
record. Entering the playoff not much was expected from the surprising second year
team as they entered a Wild Card game against the Bills in Buffalo where no
road team had ever won a postseason game. However, led by fullback Natrone Means
the Jaguars continued their hot streak stunning the Bills 30-27 to advance to
the Divisional Round. The Jaguars next opponents where the Denver Broncos, who
also had a dominant home field history in the postseason. The Jaguars are listed
as 14-point underdogs, while member of the Denver media confuses the home city
of the Jaguars identifying them as hailing from Jackson, Mississippi. The Jaguars
would fall behind early as the Broncos jump out to a 14-3 lead. However
the Jaguars would battle back to take a lead in the 3rd Quarter, the Jaguars would
expand their lead to ten points midway through the 4th Quarter as millions
watched stunned. The Broncos would score to get back within a Field Goal, but the
Jaguars would recover an on-side kick to seal a stunning 30-27 win to advance
to the AFC Championship Game. However, the Jaguars Cinderella season would end
with a 20-6 loss to the Patriots in frigid New England. Turnovers would end up
being the undoing of the Jaguars, as the Patriots scored 17 points off Jacksonville
mistakes.
1997: The Jaguars season almost ends before it even begins as Quarterback Mark Brunell
suffers a knee injury in preseason. Fortunately the injury was not as serious as
initially thought and the Jaguars young Quarterback was able to return in the
third week of the season. In Brunell's absence the Jaguars were able to win their
first two games behind back-ups Rob Johnson, and Steve Mathews. Brunell's return
on September 22nd coincided with first ever Monday Night game in Jacksonville.
Brunell threw for 306 yards, but the victory wasn't clinched until the final
play, when Clyde Simmons blocked a 40-yard game-winning field goal attempt
and Chris Hudson returned the ball 58 yards for a touchdown as time expired.
The Jaguars would end the season with an 11-5 record, that had them tied with
Steelers for the AFC Central title, but the Steelers claimed the division by
a tiebreaker. The Jaguars would find themselves in a Wild Card rematch with Denver
Broncos. However, the Broncos would not be beaten again as they hammered the
Jaguars 42-17 at Denver, beginning a run that would take them to the Super Bowl
Championship.
1998: The Jaguars get off to a 5-0 start, highlighted by a 28-21 win over the Miami Dolphins
during a Monday Night game on October 12th. The win over the Dolphins is
highlighted by several big plays including a 77-yard Touchdown run by Running Back
Fred Taylor, and two 4th Quarter Mark Brunell Touchdown passes to Keenan McCardell.
However, the Jaguars would struggle the rest of the way only winning 6
of their last 11 games. However it was good enough to give their second consecutive
11-5 season, which this time was good enough for the Jaguars to claim their
first division title. In their first-ever home playoff game, the Jaguars defeat
the New England Patriots 25-10. Mark Brunell returns after missing three games
with an ankle injury to throw a Touchdown pass and Mike Hollis kicks four field
goals in the NFL three vs. six game during Wild Card weekend. The Jaguars
would then travel to the Meadowlands to face the Jets in the Divisional Round.
The Jaguars would prove to be pesky for the favored Jets, but in the end they could
not stop the Jets from scoring as the Jaguars season ended with a 34-24 loss.
1999: The Jaguars dominate the AFC from the start of the season which began with a 41-3
win over the San Francisco 49ers at Alltel Stadium. The Jaguars would roll through
out the entire season including winning a franchise record 11 straight games,
before finishing the season with a 14-2 record. Leading the way for the Jaguars
who earn the number one seed in the playoffs are Wide Receiver Jimmy Smith
who leads the NFL with 116 receptions, and a defense that allows only 217 points.
The Jaguars dominance continues in the Divisional Round of the playoffs as
the Jaguars trounce the Dolphins 62-7 before a crazed home crowd at Alltel Stadium.
The game which marked the end of Dan Marino, and Jimmy Johnson's careers in
Miami served notice that the Jaguars were the dominant team in the Sunshine State,
as even the Jaguars back-up Quarterback Jay Fiedler torched the Dolphins
in the second half. Jacksonville's 62 points and 55-point margin are the second
most ever in NFL postseason history, and Fred Taylor's 90-yard run is the longest
ever in an NFL playoff game. In the AFC Championship Game the Jaguars were
heavy favorites against the Tennessee Titans, and even went into halftime with
a 14-10 lead. However, the Titans would shut down the Jaguars in the second half
on their way to a 33-14 victory to earn a trip to Super Bowl XXXIV.
2000: The Jaguars would win two or their first three games including the teams first ever
shutout a 13-0 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals on September 17th. However,
injuries and poor play would lead to five straight losses that would end the
Jaguars playoff hopes in October. The Jaguars would rebound to get their record
to 7-7, but they were already mathematically eliminated from the postseason before
losing their final two games to end the season with a disappointing 7-9 record.
2001: The Jaguars got a good jump out of the gate winning their first two games while only
allowing nine points. However, injuries and the Jaguars lack of depth would
catch up to them quickly as they lost eight of their next nine games to fall out
of playoff contention. The Jaguars would win their next three games on the road,
before finishing the season with a disappointing 6-10 record.2002: The Jaguars would get off to a solid start winning three straight after losing their
season opener to the Indianapolis Colts. However, the Jags would soon come
crashing to earth as they lost four straight games, including a 21-19 home
loss to the expansion Houston Texans. The Jaguars would rebound to get their
record back to .500 by beating the Washington Redskins and the Texans in their
rematch in Houston. However, the Jags would lose five of their last six games as
they finished in third place in the newly formed AFC South with a record of 6-10.
After three consecutive disappointing seasons, Tom Coughlin the Jaguars original
coach and General Manager would be fired. 2003: Heading into the season with new Coach Jack Del Rio most expected the Jaguars to
go through a season of transition. Things would not get off to a good start as
the Jaguars held a 17-0 lead in Week 1 on the road against the Carolina Panthers,
but let it slip away in the final minute losing 24-3. The Jags would lose their
first four games as Quarterback Mark Brunnel was shelved with a season ending
elbow injury after just three weeks. The loss of Brunnel only gave the Jaguars
a chance to allow their top draft pick and Quarterback of the future Byron Leftwich
get his feet wet. As with most rookies Leftwich was shaky in his first
few games as the Jags won just one of their next four games starting the season
1-7. However as the season improved so did Leftwich and the Jaguars as they won
three of their last five games to finish the season with a 5-11 record.
Following the season the transition continued as Mark Brunnel the Jags starting
Quarterback since early in their inaugural season was traded to the Washington
Redskins.2004: The Jaguars started the season in dramatic fashion as the beat the Buffalo Bills
on the road 13-10 on a Byron Leftwich seven yard pass to Ernest Wilford. A week
later in their home opener Leftwich found Wilford early and let the defense do
the rest in a 7-6 win over the Denver Broncos. The Jaguars would eventually improve
to 3-0 beating the Tennessee Titans on the road 15-12 as Fred Taylor scored
with nine seconds left. After losing their next two games the Jaguars pulled
off some more late game heroics beating the Kansas City Chiefs 22-16 as Byron
Leftwich found Cortez Hankton in the endzone with 45 seconds left. Late game heroics
continued for the Jaguars in Indianapolis as they beat the Colts 27-24 on
a 53-yard Field Goal by Josh Scobee in the final minute. After a disappointing
loss to the Houston Texans the Jaguars again won in dramatic fashion beating the
Detroit Lions in overtime 23-17 as David Garrard playing in place of an injured
Byron Leftwich connected with Jimmy Smith on a 36-yard Touchdown pass. However,
after going through the ringer with some many dramatic finishes early in the
season the Jaguars seemed to be running out of gas as they dropped three games
in a row. After bouncing back to beat the Chicago Bears the Jaguars traveled
to a frigid Lambeau Field and stunned the Green Bay Packers 28-25 to keep their
playoff hopes alive. However ,it was not meant to be as they were shutout at
home by the Texans 21-0 in the next to last game of the season. The Jags would
go on to beat the Oakland Raiders on the road 13-6, scoring all their points in
the 4th Quarter in typical Jaguar fashion as they finished with a 9-7, which was
good enough for second place in the AFC South.
2005: After a solid 9-7 season the Jaguars entered the new season with renewed playoff
optimism, that optimism would be well rewarded in Week 1 as the Jaguars had an
impressive 26-14 win over the Seattle Seahawks. The following week the Jaguars
would travel to Indianapolis for a showdown with the Colts. The Jaguars tough defense
clamped down hard on Peyton Manning allowing just 122 passing yards as they
held a 3-0 lead most of the game. However, the Colts defense was just as strong
and eventually the Colts as they scored 10 unanswered points in the 4th Quarter
to beat the Jaguars 10-3. The following week the Jaguars had another tough
battle on their hands as they needed overtime to beat the New York Jets 26-20
as Byron Leftwich hit Jimmy Smith on a 36-yard Touchdown pass. After a loss to
the Denver Broncos the Jaguars behind a 132 yard rushing game from Fred Taylor
beat the Cincinnati Bengals, then followed it up by beating a Pittsburgh Steelers
team playing without Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, as Rashean Mathis intercepted
a pass from Tommy Maddox and returned 41 yards for a Touchdown in overtime
to give the Jaguars as 23-17 win. Following a disappointing setback to the
St. Louis Rams, the Jaguars took advantage of the week portion of their schedule
winning three straight before losing before losing Byron Leftwich to an ankle
injury early in a game against the Arizona Cardinals. The Jags would still manage
to win the game as back up David Garrard was mistake free as Derrick Winbush
ran back kickoff 91 yards for a Touchdown as the Jaguars continued their winning
streak with a 24-17 win. Despite not having Leftwich the rest of the regular
season the Jaguars led by a strong defense and an offense that held on to the
ball managed to win four of their remaining five games to earn a playoff spot
with a solid record of 12-4. The Jaguars would get Byron Leftwich back for the
playoffs as they faced the tough task of facing the two time defending champion
New England Patriots in Foxboro. Leftwich was clearly rusty as the Jaguars managed
to score just three points as the Patriots broke the game open late taking
advantage of a Jaguars team that seemed overwhelmed by their playoff surrounding
losing 28-3.
2006: Coming off a playoff appearance, hopes were high in Jacksonville as the Jaguars had
one of the top young defenses in the NFL. The Jaguars would get off to a strong
start winning their opener 24-17 over the Dallas Cowboys, before blanking the
defending Super Bowl Champion Pittsburgh Steelers 9-0 on Monday Night. However,
the Jaguars would suffer two painful losses on the road as they lost to the
Indianapolis Colts, before suffering a 36-30 overtime loss to the Washington Redskins
at the hands of former Jaguar Quarterback Mark Brunell. The Jaguars would
return home and bounce back with a 41-0 thumping of the New York Jets. However
the following week the Jaguars would be stunned again on the road losing to
the Houston Texans 27-7. That loss would mark the end of Quarterback Byron Leftwich's
season as an ankle injury forced him to miss the last 10 games. With back
up Quarterback David Garrard the Jaguars would win three of their next four games.
Following a 27-24 heartbreaking loss to the Buffalo Bills, the Jaguars played
their best two games of the season beating the Miami Dolphins 24-10, before
running over the Colts in a 44-17 win at home that saw the emergence of Rookie
Running Back Maurice Jones-Drew who scored two rushing touchdowns with 166 yards
rushing, while adding a 93-yard kickoff return for a Touchdown, as the Jaguars
rushed for 375 yards as a team. At 8-5 the Jaguars were in strong position
for another playoff run, but it would be the last win of the season as the injuries
just caught up with them as they lost their last three games and finished
with a disappointing 8-8 record.
2007: Coming off their disappointing finish the Jaguars dropped a bomb shell at the end
of the preseason when they released Quarterback Byron Leftwhich, turning the job
over to David Garrad on a full time basis. At first it looked as if the move
would back fire as the Jaguars struggled in their first two games a hard fought
13-10 loss at home to the Tennessee Titans and a 13-7 win over the Atlanta Falcons.
However, as Garrad got more comfortable starting the Jaguars started to
look like a Super Bowl contender as they stunned the Denver Broncos on the road
23-14. After winning their next two games the Jaguars entered their first meeting
with the Indianapolis Colts with a 4-1 record and a chance to climb into first
place. However, the defending Super Bowl Champions proved to be too tough and
they beat up the Jags 29-7. With Garrad shaken up the Jaguars were forced to
start Quinn Gray at quarterback against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but the defense
rose to the occasion with Aaron Glenn returning an interception for a Touchdown
as the stunned their Sunshine State rivals 24-23 on the road. After splitting
their next two games, David Garrad returned and the Jaguars continued to roll
winning two straight heading into their rematch with the Colts. Once again the
Colts put the Jaguars in an early hole, but the Jags would not go down without
a fight making a late charge, but fell three points shot 28-25. Following the
Colts loss the Jaguars played some of their best football of the season crushing
the Carolina Panthers, with Fred Taylor providing the game's biggest highlight
on an 80-yard Touchdown run. A week later it was Taylor again, scoring the
game winning touchdown with 1:57 left as the Jags stunned the Pittsburgh Steelers
on the road 29-22. Taylor would finish the season with 1,202 yards rushing,
making the Pro Bowl for the first time n his career. The Jaguars would continue
to roll a week later as they crushed the Oakland Raiders 49-11 to lock up a playoff
berth. After closing the season with a meaningless loss to the Houston Texans
the Jaguars who posted an 11-5 record returned to Pittsburgh to take on the
Steelers in the Wild Card Round, with defense and their running game the Jaguars
established an early lead as they entered the fourth quarter with a 28-10 lead.
However, the Steelers made a furious rally scoring three touchdowns in the
fourth to take a 29-28 lead, (missing two two-point conversion attempts). The
Jaguars would not fade away as Josh Scobey hit a 25-yard field goal with 37 seconds
left to give the Jaguars a dramatic 31-29 win to take advantage of those missed
two point attempts. A week later against the unbeaten New England Patriots
the Jaguars, made a game of it in Foxboro as they went to halftime tied at 14.
However, the Patriots would pull away at the end beating the Jags for the second
time in three years 31-20.
2008: After reaching the second round of the playoffs the Jaguars entered the season with
hopes of joining the elite of the AFC. However, two straight losses to start
the season put them in a hole they would not be able to dig themselves out of.
Particularly frustrating was their Week 2 loss to the Buffalo Bills in their home
opener, as the Bills scored ten unanswered points in the game's final 4:10
to win 20-16. The Jags would recover the following week to stun the Indianapolis
Colts 23-21 on the road, as Kicker Josh Scobee nailed a game winning 51 yard
Field Goal with four seconds remaining. Scobee would be the hero again a week later,
as the Jaguars beat the Houston Texans in overtime 30-27, hitting the game
winning 37 yard Field Goal in an exciting back and forth battle. After splitting
their next two games, the Jaguars stumbled badly out of the bye week, losing
six of their next seven games to fall out of playoff contention. During the slump
the Jaguars only win would come against the winless Detroit Lions. The Jaguars
would rebound to beat the Green Bay Packers 20-16 as Maurice Jones-Drew scored
a game winning Touchdown with under two minutes left. However, it would be
the final win of the season, as the Jaguars lost their last two games, and finished
the season with a dreadful 5-11 record.
2009: Due to the struggling economy ticket sales in Jacksonville took a hit, as the Jaguars
entire home season was blacked out until their final home game against the
Indianapolis Colts. This led to speculation the Jaguars could be one of the teams
that eventually moved to Los Angeles. Seen as a team that was rebuilding, nobody
gave the Jaguars much chance to reach the playoffs when the season began.
Facing the Indianapolis Colts on the road in the season opener the Jaguars played
well, but had nothing to show for it as they lost 14-12 with a potential tying
two point attempt failing in the final minutes. After losing to the Arizona
Cardinals 31-17, the Jaguars began to show some promise, winning three of their
next four games to enter the bye week at 3-3. Despite a 30-13 loss to the Tennessee
Titans on the road following the bye, the Jaguars continued to play well
winning their next three games, highlighted by a thrilling 24-22 win over the
New York Jets on the road as Josh Scobee knocked home a winning field goal from
extra point distance, after Maurice Jones-Drew sacrificed stats for the team,
kneeling at the 1 yard line instead of scoring a touchdown, so the Jags could win
the game with no time on the clock. After a 20-3 loss to the San Francisco 49ers,
the Jaguars continued to stay in the playoff race as they beat the Houston
Texans 23-18 at 7-5. However, facing the Miami Dolphins at home the Jaguars season
suddenly stalled much like mascot Jaxson de Ville, who was stuck on a zip
line suspended over the field during a pre game stunt, as they lost 14-10. Four
days later in front of the only sell out at Jacksonville Municipal Stadium the
Jaguars would lose another heartbreaker to the Indianapolis Colts, who improved
to 14-0 with a 35-31 win, as Peyton Manning outdueled David Garrard. The Jags
would go on to lose their final two games to the New England Patriots and Cleveland
Browns to finish with a record of 7-9.
2010: Hoping to get off to a strong start, the Jaguars hosted the Denver Broncos in the
season opener with a full house on hand at the newly renamed Everbank Field. A
thunder storm would interrupt the game before the start of the 4th Quarter, but
in the end when the clouds cleared the Jaguars were victorious, winning 24-17
on David Garrard pass to Kassim Osgood with 7:59 left in the game. After losses
to the San Diego Chargers and Philadelphia Eagles, the Jaguars would get back
2-2 with a confidence building 31-28 win over the Indianapolis Colts. The exciting
game saw the Jags take a 28-21 lead with just over two minutes left on an
eight yard Maurice Jones-Drew Touchdown run. The Colts would quickly drive down
the field to tie the game, with 48 seconds left. However, the Jaguars would get
back down the field, as Josh Scobee hit a 59 yard Field Goal as time expired.
The Jaguars would follow it up a week later with a 36-26 win over the Buffalo
Bills on the road. However, after losing David Garrard early in a Monday Night
game with the Tennessee Titans, the Jaguars would drop two straight with Trent
Edwards and Todd Bouman leading the way at Quarterback. David Garrard would return
in time to face the Dallas Cowboys on the road, passing for 260 yards, with
four touchdowns as the Jaguars beat the Cowboys on the road 35-17. After posting
a 4-4 record, the Jaguars came out of their bye week facing the Houston Texans
in a crucial game at home. The game would tilt back and forth with the
Jags scoring two touchdowns in the 2nd Quarter and the Texans scoring two in the
3rd Quarter as the game was tied 17-17 entering the final 15 minutes. The Jags
would break out in front as Garrard connected with Zach Miller on a 52 yard
pass, only to see the Texans comeback and tie things right away. Tied 24-24 and
at midfield David Garrard would throw up a Hail Mary pass as time expired in regulation.
The ball would take a fortunate bounce into the arms of Mike Thomas
was crossed into the endzone to give the Jaguars a thrilling 31-21 victory. With
three wins in their next four games the Jaguars would take over first place in
the AFC South as they faced the Colts with a chance to take a stranglehold of
the division. However, despite a solid game from David Garrard the Colts led by
Peyton Manning proved to be too strong, winning 34-24 to take back control of
the division. A week later the Jaguars would suffer an even worse loss to the
Washington Redskins at home, as David Garrard threw two costly interceptions including
one in overtime as they lost 20-17. With Trent Edwards starting for an
injured Garrard, the Jaguars season would end with a 34-17 loss to the Houston
Texans as they finished the season with three straight losses and an 8-8 record.2011: The Jaguars season began on overcast afternoon as they took on the Titans at EverBank
Field. Just before the season the Jaguars made a quarterback change as David
Garrard was released, with the plans to start Blaine Gabbert, who was chosen
in the first round out of Missouri, in their upcoming plans. However, Gabbert
would have to weight as Luke McCown started the opener. Defense would be the stat
in the opener as the Jaguars recorded a 16-14 win, as they held Pro Bowl Rusher
Chris Johnson to 24 yards. A week later things would not go as well,
as McCown had just 59 yards passing and was intercepted four times, as the Jaguars
were beaten by the New York Jets 32-3 at the Meadowlands. A week later the
Jaguars returned home, and began the Blaine Gabbert era at quarterback as they
faced the Carolina Panthers in a battle of rookie QBs. Heavy rains fell throughout
the game as the Panthers 16-14, with Gabbert passing for 175 yards in his debut.
Gabbert would not improve much on his first game numbers, as the Jags lost
home games to the New Orleans Saints and Cincinnati Bengals. Despite the struggles
of their rookie quarterback the Jaguars defense did give them a chance to
win games, as they had their chances in a 17-13 road loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
A week later back home on Monday Night Football, the Jaguars defense had
a break through as they stunned the Baltimore Ravens 12-7 in a defensive struggle,
that was won with four Field Goals from Josh Scobee. However, Blaine Gabbert
continued to have lackluster numbers, with just 96 passing yards, three of
which were longer than 50 yards. The following week the Jaguars would suffer a
24-14 loss to the Houston Texans, as they went into the bye week with a record
of 2-6. Coming out of the bye week, the Jaguars turned their focus to Maurice Jones-Drew
as Baline Gabbert continued to struggle. MJD would carry the ball 25
times in Week 9, with 114 yards and a Touchdown as the Jaguars beat the Indianapolis
Colts 17-3. However, they were unable to get anything going as they suffered
a 14-10 loss to the Cleveland Browns, despite Gabbert passing for 210 yards.
Following a 20-13 loss to the Texans at home, the Jaguars were sold by Found
Wayne Weaver. The new owner Shahid Khan, a Pakistani Immigrant who created an auto
parts company purchased the team for $760 million and made a verbal commitment
to keep the team in Jacksonville. The also had a new coach as Jack Del Rio
was fired, with five games left in the season, he would be repalced on an interim
basis by Mel Turner. Khan got a warm reception as the Jaguars returned to Monday
Night Football to host the San Diego Chargers, but the struggles continued
as they lost their third straight game 38-14. A week later in a battle of the
Sunshine State played in the rain against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers the Jaguars
got their first win for their new owner 41-14 as they scored 28 points in the second
quarter, highlighted by two defense touchdowns from Colin Cloherty and Nate
Collins, while Maurice Jones-Drew had four touchdowns. Four days later the score
again was 41-14, ad the Jaguars played on Thursday Night Football. This time
they were on the wrong side, losing to the Atlanta Falcons. Following a road
loss to the Titans, the Jaguars hosted the Colts in the final game of the season
with the rushing title in reach all eyes were on MJD. With 25 carries and 169
yards, Maurice Jones-Drew would finish the season with 1,606 yards winning the
rushing title and setting a new franchise record. The Jaguars would beat the
Colts 19-13, to finish with a record of 5-11. Incredibly MJD accounted for
47.7% of the Jaguars total offense, while Blaine Gabbert's anemic 65.4 QB rating
was the fifth worse ever measured. 2012: Expectations were not too high as the Jaguars began the season with new Coach Mike
Mularkey. The team was clearly still in transition under new Owner Shahid Khan
and they were picked by many experts to be among the worst teams in the NFL.
In the season opener, the Jaguars put forth a good effort playing the Minnesota
Vikings, as Blaine Gabbert passed for 260 yards with two touchdowns. Late in the
game the Jags even had a lead as Ceil Short caught a 39 yard Touchdown pass
with 58 seconds left to give the Jaguars a 23-20 lead. However, the Vikings would
quickly go down the field and set up Blair Walsh for a game tying 55 yard Field
Goal. In overtime Walsh would hit another Field Goal to give the Vikings a
26-23 win. Following a 27-7 loss to the Houston Texans in their home opener, the
Jaguars looked to be in trouble again as they trailed the Indianapolis Colts
14-3 at the half. However, Maurice Jones-Drew would get them back into the game
with a 59 yard Touchdown run in the 3rd Quarter. The Jags would later take the
lead after a pair of Field Goals from Josh Scobee. The Colts though would comeback
as Adam Vinateri hit a Field Goal with 37 seconds left. Needing a miracle
to avoid an 0-3 start, Blaine Gabbert connected with Cecil Shorts for an 80 yard
TD pass with 11 seconds left that gave the Jaguars a dramatic 22-17 win on the
road. However, at home the Jaguars continued to play awful football as they were
blown out by the Cincinnati Bengals and Chicago Bears before heading into the
bye week at 1-4. After the bye, the Jaguars put forth another solid effort on
the road, building a 23-13 lead over the Oakland Raiders. However, the Raiders
rallied to tie the game, and would win it in overtime 26-23. The Jaguars continued
to play better away from EverBank Field as they only lost 24-15 at Lambeau
Field against the Green Bay Packers. Though that only spelled out how bleak the
Jaguars season was as they sat at 1-6, with Maurice Jones-Drew sidelined with
a foot injury, as nine point road losses were considered a positive. Games at
home continued to be a nightmare as the Jaguars continued to get blowout at EverBank
Field as they suffered back-to-back 17 point losses to the Detroit Lions
and Colts. During the Colts game they would lose Blaine Gabbert to a shoulder
injury. Back up Chad Henne would get the start the following week as the 1-8 Jaguars
played the 8-1 Texans. Once again the Jaguars put their best effort on the
road. Backup QB Chad Henne had a career day in Houston, passing for 428 yards
with four touchdowns. However, once again the Jags would blow a late lead and
lose in overtime 43-37.The Jaguars would take the momentum from their near upset
of the Texans and earned their first home win of the year by beating the Tennessee
Titans 24-19, as Chad Henne had another solid game with 219 yards passing
and two touchdowns. It would also be the last win of the season for the Jaguars,
as they would end the year losing their last five games to post the worst record
in team history at 2-14. The poor record would lead to Coach Mike Mularkey
being fired after just one season. He would later be replaced by Seattle Seahawks
Defensive Coordinator Gus Bradley.
2013: Under new Coach Gus Bradley, the Jaguars were clearly a team that was in a rebuild
mode. Despite the struggles of Blaine Gabbert, the age of Maurice Jone-Drew and
the off field troubles of Justin Blackmon, the Jaguars looked first at the offensive
line and selected Tackle Luke Joeckel for Texas A&M with the second overall
pick. When the season started it was ugly for the Jaguars, nearly as ugly
as their new two tone helmets. Beginning with a 28-2 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs
at home, the Jaguars lost their first eight games, each by at least ten points.
In Week 8 the Jaguars made their first trip to London, losing to the San
Francisco 49ers 42-10. The Jaguars will play annually in London over the next
four years, leading some to speculate that Owner Shahid Khan may want to move the
Jaguars across the pond. Following the loss in London the Jaguars had a bye
week, but suffered another loss when second year receiver Justin Blackmon was suspended
for a second time for violating the league's substance abuse policy. Blackmon,
who missed the first four games, would be suspended indefinitely after
playing just four games. Facing the Tennessee Titans on the road in Week 10, the
Jaguars led early with Maurice Jones-Drew scoring on a six yard run. After holding
a 13-7 lead at the half, Jordan Todman had a five yard run, to expand the
lead to 20-7. Every time the Titans got closer the Jaguars would make a play
as Will Blackmon had a 21 yard fumble return late in the fourth quarter after the
Titans cut the lead to two points. The Titans would score in the final seconds,
but the Jaguars would end their losing streak with a 29-27 win. Following
a home loss to the Arizona Cardinals, the Jaguars won three straight winning
both matchups against the Houston Texans and stunning the Cleveland Browns on
the road. However, it was all the Jaguars would get in another otherwise poor
season as they finished with a record of 4-12.
2014: With the third pick in the NFL Draft, the Jacksonville Jaguars would take another
quarterback, selecting Blake Bortles from Central Florida. Bortles would start
the season on the bench, as Chad Henne began the season against the Philadelphia
Eagles. Henne connected with Allen Hurns for two touchdowns in the second quarter,
as the Jaguars held a surprising 17-0 lead at the half. The Eagles would
come alive in the second half and quickly turned the game around scoring 34 unanswered
points to win the game. A week later the Jaguars would get blown out by
the Washington Redskins and back up QB Kirk Cousins 41-10. Coming home it would
only get uglier for the Jags as the Indianapolis Colts jumped out to a 30-0
halftime lead. In the second half, Blake Bortles would relieve Henne and completed
14 out of 24 passes for 223 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions as
the Colts won the game 44-14. Blake Bortles made his first career start a week
later on the road game against the San Diego Chargers, passing for 253 yards, one
touchdown, and two interceptions in a 33-14 loss. Bortles was better in his
first home start, but a late pick six would be his undoing as the Jaguars dropped
to 0-5 with a 17-9 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers. Bortles would pass for 336
yards the following week, before a blocked Field Goal at the end of the game
allowed the Tennessee Titans to hold on for a 16-14 win. Blake Bortles would finally
win his first game in Week 7, despite three interceptions as the Jaguars
beat the Cleveland Browns 24-7. The star for the Jaguars would be Denard Robinson
who rushed for 127 yards, with a big touchdown run in the third quarter. The
Jaguars would lose their next three games heading into the bye week with a record
of 1-9, losing games to the Miami Dolphins and Cincinnati Bengals before suffering
a 31-17 loss to the Dallas Cowboys in their annual trip to London. Blake
Bortles and the Jaguars continue to struggle after the bye, losing again to
the Colts 23-3. Down 21-0 at home in the second quarter of Week 13, the Jaguars
showed some real pride for the first time all season as they rallied to win 25-24.
The turning point of the game came in the third quarter when J.T. Thomas recovered
an Eli Manning fumble in the end zone for a touchdown. Following a Blake
Bortles touchdown, the Jags would get second defensive touchdown, when Aaron
Colvin scooped up a Larry Donnell fumble and returned it 41 yards to give Jacksonville
a 22-21 lead. After the Giants answered with a Field Goal the game down
to the final minute, with Josh Scobee nailing the game winner with 32 seconds
left. Following losses to the Houston Texans and Baltimore Ravens, the Jaguars
would earn a third win in a Thursday Night battle with the Tennessee Titans. The
highlight of the 21-13 win was a 62 yard Touchdown run from Jordan Todman. Finishing
the season with a 23-17 road loss to the Texans the Jaguars finished the
year with a record of 3-13.
2015: The Jacksonville Jaguars hoped to take a step forward in Blake Bortles second season
at quarterback. Two decades after joining the NFL together the Jaguars hosted
the Carolina Panthers to open the season. The two teams played evenly in the
first half as the Jaguars blew a chance to tie the game when Jason Meyers missed
a PAT. The Jags were unable to get anything going in the second half as the
Panthers on the way to starting 14-0 beat the Jaguars 20-9. A week later the Jaguars
would earn Sunshine State bragging rights by beating the Miami Dolphins 23-20
as Meyers 28-yard Field Goal with 1:08 was the difference as Blake Bortles
had a solid game passing for 273 yards with two touchdowns. Following an ugly
51-17 loss to the New England Patriots in Fobxboro, the Jaguars had a chance to
make a statement in the AFC South against the Indianapolis Colts on the road.
However, after leading 13-10 at the half the Jaguars failed to score again and
lost in overtime 16-13. With state wide bragging rights on the line again, the
Jaguars found themselves in an old fashioned shoot out against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Bortles passed for 303 yards with three touchdowns but a costly interception
set up a Tampa touchdown. Later a fumble by Corey Grant was scooped up
and returned for a touchdown. The two mistakes proved to be the Jaguars undoing
as Tampa won the game 38-31. Returning home Blake Bortles is picked off three
times and has three touchdowns as the Jaguars fell to 1-5 with a 31-20 loss to
the Houston Texans. A week later in their annual game in London, the Jaguars made
history against the Buffalo Bills playing in the first game ever broadcast over
the internet on Yahoo streaming. Early on it was all Jags, as they jumped out
to a 27-3 lead with Chris Clemons returning a fumble six yards for a score and
Tevin Smith posting a pick six score. The Bill would battle back to take the
lead in the fourth quarter 31-27. However, after giving up another pick six, Blake
Bortles showed some much needed moxie completing a seven play 84-yard drive
with a 31-yard pass to Allen Hurns to win the game 34-31. Following the bye week,
the Jaguars suffered a 28-23 loss to the New York Jets at the Meadowlands.
In Week 10 it appeared the Jaguars suffered another loss when Blake Bortles was
sacked by Elvis Dumervil to end the game. However, Dumervil was ruled to have
grabbed Bortles facemask giving the Jaguars an untimed Filed Goal drive. Jason
Myers would cash in the second chance hitting a 53-yard Field Goal to win the
game 22-20. Returning home, the Jaguars would get a second straight win against
the Tennessee Titans in a Thursday Night Color Rush Game that had the Jaguars
in gold head to toe with Jason Meyers hitting four field goals. The Jaguars though
could not continue their success as they lost their next two games before facing
the Colts at Everbank Field. After falling behind early 13-3, the Jaguars
showed just how explosive they could be scoring 51 points to win the game 51-16.
The big play was Jacksonville's weapon of choice as Adam Branch returned a fumble
58 yards for a score to put the Jags back in the game before the half. In
the third quarter they would take the lead as Bortles connected with Allen Hurns
for an 80-yard score on the first play of the second half. They would add to
the lead on a 73-yard Punt Return by Rashad Greene. The win was fun for the Jaguars
but was also the last of the season as they dropped their final three games
and finished 5-11. In his second season Blake Bortles showed quite a bit of
improvement, passing for 4,428 yards with 35 touchdowns and 18 interceptions.